Plywood Lift Using Rope and Pulleys

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I put together a plywood lift to easily lift plywood sheets onto my workbench.
I hadn't seen it done this way and thought I'd share since I'm very happy with it.
It is constructed in a 2-pulley configuration with the lower pulley having a ratcheting/locking mechanism to hold the position at any point but also easily released. The pulleys hang from a unistrut trolley mounted to the ceiling.
I like that the rope and pulley design is easy to stow out of the way and also quick and easy to put to work.
It made lifting 3/4" plywood and 3/4" MDF all day for a under-stair closet/cabinet build an easy task.

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[Curt Harms]

Great idea. Handling full sheets of 3/4" ply is one of the most difficult tasks for solo woodworkers, 3/4" MDF has to be worse.

[Kevin Jenness]

Best thing I have found is the Crazy Horse dolly. https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?295465-Crazy-Horse-dolly

[Cameron Wood]

That looks very handy.

The Crazy Horse dolly is brilliant, if you have a smooth shop floor.

Here's my gizmo:

I use a skateboard a lot for moving heavy stuff, but it's not ideal for sheet goods, so this is an adaptation. Large inline skate wheels, with the truck cranked down tight.
These pics are a few years old, so it's a bit more worn now. I just used it to move a commercial door around (+150lbs) including some steps and uneven landscape terrain. Sometimes the wheels catch going over stuff, and the load slides but it has made it into the top tier of equipment. I keep it in the work truck.

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Another thing that has proven it's worth is this mini chain hoist:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08ZHGY3BV?psc=1&ref=product_details

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I did find the crazy horse video while trying to figure out a method that would work in my shop. It does look like it works well and is great for his shop/space. However, it requires a bigger space than I have.
The pulley/rope system takes up virtually no space and takes surprisingly little effort to get the plywood on/off the table.
Cameron I like the skateboard/rollerblade wheel idea. The plywood handler I have works well but the wheels are a bit suspect. I think I could retrofit it with a couple of pair of roller blade wheels if the wheels give out on it.

[George Yetka]

I bought the Grabo last summer and it allowed me to maneuver 50 pieces of sheet goods through my small shop with little back pain. The hardest part of the lifting of sheet goods is the awkwardness not the weight. There will come a day when I will need more than the grabo though and the lift is a good idea. I agree Eric, the Crazy horse is very nice but when the shop is 500 square feet with 50 square feet of floor showing it becomes less useful.

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I bought the Grabo for some large format marble tile that I remodeled the bathroom with. I now have it for my shop and it is a very nice tool to have for handling plywood. It doesn't work with MDF due to the porosity. It comes in handy.

I'm not young my any means but do keep my strength up. As you indicated, the weight isn't really the issue, it is the awkwardness.

I did try to come up with a way to incorporate the Grabo since it does help with loading/unloading it. However, I abandoned it due to the need to connect the lifting mechanism to my worktable. I tried a couple of versions of the lift without the worktable connection but the "awkwardness" always took over. The ropes connected to the table is the trick.

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I take that back George!
I needed to lift this off my workbench this morning and the Grabo comment reminded me it may be useful lifting things off the bench.


Indeed it is!
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